The present invention is directed to a clear cosmetic gel composition (for example, a clear soft gel antiperspirant composition) that is a water-in-oil emulsion. The composition of the present invention can include deodorant and/or antiperspirant active materials, to combat body malodor, for example, in axillary regions of the human body, by applying the composition to the human body (for example, to the skin, in axillary regions of the body).
The present invention is particularly directed to cosmetic gel compositions, including antiperspirant and deodorant gel compositions, that have reduced whitening and tack, and reduced skin irritation, and which can include increased amounts of the cosmetically active ingredient (for example, increased amounts of antiperspirant active ingredient), and can include other commercially beneficial materials, yet which can be provided as a clear gel product.
Antiperspirant products are well known in the art. Antiperspirants have appeared in the marketplace in varied dosage forms, such as sticks, soft solids, soft gels, roll-on, aerosols and creams. Generally, these dosage forms include a solution of the active ingredient in a suitable solvent, a suspension of the active ingredient in a non-solvent, or a multiphasic dispersion or emulsion in which a solution of the active ingredient is dispersed in some continuous phase or in which the solubilized active ingredient constitutes a continuous phase.
Of the above-referred-to dosage forms, the stick form is an example of a solid form, and the soft solid and soft gel are thickened forms which may or may not be solid (for example, under some circumstances, gels can flow). The stick form can be distinguished from a soft solid or soft gel in that, in a stick, the formulated product can retain its shape for extended time periods outside the package, the product not loosing its shape significantly (allowing for some shrinkage due to solvent evaporation). Adjustment of amounts of gelling or thickening agents can be used in order to form a soft gel or stick.
Soft gels or soft solids can be suitably packaged in containers which have the appearance of a stick, but which dispense through apertures (for example, slots or pores) on the top surface of the package. The soft solid products have also been called soft sticks or "smooth-ons", and hereinafter are generically called "soft solids". Reference is made to U.S. Pat. No. 5,102,656 to Kasat, U.S. Pat. No. 5,069,897 to Orr, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,937,069 to Shin, each of which discloses such soft solids, including physical characteristics thereof such as viscosity and hardness. The contents of each of these three U.S. Patents are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.
Recently, there has been significant activity in developing clear and translucent antiperspirant sticks and soft gels, particularly to provide sticks and soft gels having increased efficacy (for example, by providing increased amounts of the antiperspirant active in the sticks and soft gels), improved cosmetic characteristics (including reduced whitening, reduced residue and reduced tack), and reduced skin irritation potential (e.g., providing a product that is "mild").
Clear or translucent antiperspirant sticks consisting essentially of a solution of the active antiperspirant material in a polyhydric alcohol vehicle, gelled by dibenzylidene monosorbitol acetal, have been disclosed. Since the gelling agent is inherently unstable in an acidic environment, and since conventional active antiperspirant materials are acidic, much work has been involved in discovering suitable stabilizing or buffering agents to prevent or slow down acid attack on the acetal gelling agent. Such work has not been completely successful. Moreover, these clear or translucent antiperspirant sticks, containing the acetal gelling agent and including a solubilized active antiperspirant material, have the disadvantage of being inherently tacky. Thus, development work in connection with these clear or translucent antiperspirant sticks containing the acetal gelling agent has focused on discovering suitable anti-tack agents for this dosage form. However, since acid hydrolysis of the gelling agent occurs more rapidly in aqueous solutions, formulators have been forced to avoid using water in the formulations. This severely restricts the ability of the formulator to develop cosmetically elegant formulations which are simultaneously chemically stable, optically clear, low in tack, low in residue and which have acceptable application aesthetics.
Various other gelling agents have been utilized in antiperspirant and deodorant products. For example, clear stick deodorant compositions have been available for some time. The clear deodorant sticks are generally produced by using stearate soaps as gelling agents for an alcoholic or glycolic solution of an antimicrobial agent and a fragrance. These deodorant products offer no antiperspirant protection (that is, these deodorant products do not reduce flow of perspiration from a human). Conventional antiperspirant active ingredients, which are acidic, are not ordinarily used with stearate soap gelling agents, because they are incompatible with the stearate soap gelling agents, due to the chemical interaction between the antiperspirant active material and the soap and consequent inactivation of the antiperspirant active material.
Gelling, for cosmetic compositions, may also be achieved through the use of cellulosic or algin-derived polymer materials. Most of these materials are incompatible with conventional antiperspirant active ingredients, at levels of the antiperspirant active ingredients required to obtain antiperspirant efficacy. Moreover, the polymer materials are unstable at the low pH normally encountered in antiperspirant products.
Concerning wax and soap-gelled sticks, see each of U.S. Pat. No. 4,382,079 to Marschner, U.S. Pat. No. 4,414,200 to Murphy, et al, U.S. Pat. No. 4,280,994 to Turney, U.S. Pat. No. 4,265,878 to Keil, U.S. Pat. No. 3,259,545 to Teller, U.S. Pat. No. 2,970,083 to Bell, U.S. Pat. No. 2,933,433 to Teller, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 2,900,306 to Slater, U.S. Pat. No. 2,857,315 to Teller, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,383,988 to Teng.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,948,578 to Burger, et al discloses a transparent antiperspirant stick which is an oil-in-water emulsion, containing specific amounts of an antiperspirant effective aluminum salt, a nonionic surfactant which is a C.sub.11 -C.sub.18 fatty alcohol alkoxylated with from about 10 to about 20 moles ethylene oxide, a liquid oil immiscible with water, and water, the composition being free of any wax matrix. Illustratively, aluminum chlorhydrate is the antiperspirant salt, the nonionic surfactant is a C.sub.11 -C.sub.18 alcohol ethoxylate, and the liquid oil component may be selected from emollient oils, volatile silicones and mixtures of these materials.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,944,938 to Potini discloses clear, non-alcoholic, quick drying, antiperspirant and deodorant gels, which are stable both at room temperatures and at higher temperatures, are non-stinging and leave no white residue on the skin, the gel not including gelling agents, waxes, clays, or monohydric alcohols having 2-8 carbon atoms. The gels use 3-5 carbon atom trihydric alcohols as coupling agents, these alcohols acting as solublizers in the system and keeping the system stable and clear. The gels can include an aluminum active salt; a volatile water-insoluble emollient, such as isostearyl benzoate; a soluble emollient such as cetyl ether; solubilizers such as propylene glycol and glycerine; volatile siloxanes; and water.
Some cellulosic materials, such as hydroxypropylcelluouse, among others, are compatible with polyvalent metal salts and have been used in the manufacture of clear lotions. These cellulosic materials, however, must be prepared with a high percentage of water or alcohol in order to insure solubilization of the active ingredient. The resulting formulations, in addition to a high irritation potential, are tacky and pituitous, and low in efficacy, when alcohol-based; and exhibit tackiness and a long drying time when water-based.
Clear or translucent antiperspirant soft gels (which have been dispensed from containers having the appearance of stick) have recently been marketed, consisting of viscous, high-internal-phase emulsions. These soft gels exhibit some advantages over the aforementioned sticks, particularly acetal-based clear sticks, in that the selection of formulation ingredients is less restricted (for example, water can be used), and often tack can be reduced significantly. Concerning these emulsions, note U.S. Pat. No. 4,673,570 to Soldati and U.S. Pat. No. 4,900,542 to Parrotta, et al. These two U.S. patents disclose clear gelled antiperspirant compositions free of waxes and conventional gelling agents, containing a volatile silicone fluid, a silicone emulsifier, a destablizing auxiliary emulsifier, water, non-volatile emollient, a coupling agent, an active antiperspirant component and ancillary agents such as perfume, coloring agents, etc. The silicone emulsifier is a cyclomethicone-dimethicone copolyol silicone fluid marketed by Dow Corning Corp. under the trademark DOW CORNING 3225C formulation. The contents of these two U.S. patents are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.
Also to be noted is PCT (International application) Publication No. WO 92/05767. This patent document discloses a clear gel-type cosmetic product having a viscosity of at least about 50,000 cps at 21.degree. C. and a refractive index of 1.3975-1.4025 at 21.degree. C., and having an optical clarity better than 50 NTU (Nephelometric Turbidity Units) at 21.degree. C., the product being an emulsion with a water phase having an active ingredient incorporated therein and with an oil phase. The refractive indices (measured at 5893 .ANG.) of the water and oil phases match to within 0.0004. The oil phase includes an emulsifier which when properly mixed with the water phase component yields a water-in-oil emulsion, and the water phase includes one or a combination of various polar species such as water, propylene glycol, sorbitol and ethanol. The water phase includes the deodorant and/or antiperspirant active ingredient. The contents of this PCT (International application) Publication No. 92/05767 are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.
While various cosmetic gel compositions, including antiperspirant and deodorant compositions, that are clear, are known, it is still desired to provide a clear cosmetic gel composition (e.g., clear antiperspirant and/or deodorant gel composition) having an increased amount of cosmetically active material (e.g., antiperspirant agent) and also having other materials providing advantageous cosmetic effects in the composition, while maintaining a clear composition; having reduced whitening and tack; and which is mild and has reduced skin irritation potential relative to commercially available products.